Flying by myself.

[Pixilated]

Much good advice already! I have just one suggestion: don't be afraid to ask for help. I've usually flown with others, which allows me to assume they know where we're going and just plod after them, but once or twice I've been on my own in BIG airports and have never hesitated to grab somebody in a uniform, show them my ticket and say, "Where am I supposed to be and how do I get there?!?"

Irving that was ... well ...

[Chromatix]

I suggested scanning the boards by departure time because the time goes up in sequence, and is therefore easier to read quickly. If you scan using the destination, you have to stop at each line to read it, to be sure of not missing the one you need.

My suggestion is also influenced by travelling in Europe, where the destination on the screen might be in the local language, not English, or it might alternate between the two. As an extreme example, suppose you are travelling to Turku, with a transfer in Stockholm - but Turku's Swedish name is Åbo. If you scan for Turku, you'll probably miss a flight listed for Åbo. Or, travelling to Helsinki, whose Swedish name is Helsingfors, you might get tripped up by a flight travelling to Helsingborg, which is in the wrong country.

[mathnerd]

One thing that hasn't been mentioned:

Don't be afraid to ask questions! It's okay to not know what you're doing. You've never done this before. Most of the airline staff I've dealt with have been quite pleasant. As long as you're polite, they'll usually be happy to help you.

[Mikkel]

Or, travelling to Helsinki, whose Swedish name is Helsingfors, you might get tripped up by a flight travelling to Helsingborg, which is in the wrong country.

I remember a time, I think it was about ten years ago, when the US Marines invaded Sweden. They were supposed to secure a disused Norwegian airport under a Nato exercise but got to a small Swedish airport with an almost similar name, to the great surprise of the Swedish airport security .

Airports usually have a homepage. You might prepare from home, so you know where to go (if they don't change everything around while you are in the air).

[Jetfire]

I suggested scanning the boards by departure time because the time goes up in sequence, and is therefore easier to read quickly. If you scan using the destination, you have to stop at each line to read it, to be sure of not missing the one you need.

My suggestion is also influenced by travelling in Europe, where the destination on the screen might be in the local language, not English, or it might alternate between the two. As an extreme example, suppose you are travelling to Turku, with a transfer in Stockholm - but Turku's Swedish name is Åbo. If you scan for Turku, you'll probably miss a flight listed for Åbo. Or, travelling to Helsinki, whose Swedish name is Helsingfors, you might get tripped up by a flight travelling to Helsingborg, which is in the wrong country.

That may depend on the airport. A lot of the ones in North America list them by destination city (probably because North America has maybe 3 languages to care about and city names are fairly common between them). So find the city first and then your flight number to get your gate.

If you're travelling internationally, you may need to get your checked bag at a transfer airport and carry it through. You may also be clearing customs at a mid airport as well. If you have any questions at all, ASK. And ask again if you get confused.

USian airports you'll have to worry about your shoes; Canadian ones flying anywhere but the States you can keep your shoes on unless they're being picky. Belts can be hit or miss; if you don't mind beeping and can take it off quickly, feel free to take the chance.

Generally speaking, electronics should go in a separate XRay bin from your carry on. Uusally it's just the laptops; but I try to keep all my electronics close at hand in my carryon, so I can dump them all out. (In my case that tends to be Smart phone, 3DS, Kobo, and ASUS Transformer Tablet with keyboard). Last time I flew, the Transformer got some curious looks since it looks like a laptop, but it's a tablet and shows differently on the xrays.

Be early, find your gate ASAP (and if you're transferring, find THAT gate ASAP as well) then do whatever other wandering you might want to do. Only exception to that might be if the Duty Free shop is on your way out from Customs (like in Montreal); then if you're looking to buy and you have time, feel free to stop then.

If you're travelling internationally, you may need to fill out forms when entering the country (or returning to your own country). Make sure you have a pen on you (something I've gotten out of the habit of having) so you can fill it out, and make sure you know if you need to walk the luggage through customs or not.

Stay relaxed as much as you can, be polite. Ask if you don't know, and everything will be fine.

[Chromatix]

Something that *nearly* tripped me up whenever I flew to Canada was the signs directing US-origin passengers to a different channel to everyone else. The French abbreviation for "United States" is E.U. - which to my Anglophonic eyes automatically means "European Union".

[sms001]

You may get lucky and have it be the gate directly across from the gate you landed at.

Good one Jester!

I've had it happen once in fifty years of flying. Houston Hobby. Well, they were two gates apart actually. Unfortunately, there was a gun scare of some sort (long before 9/11) and the intervening gate was shut down. So we all had to go ALL the way around the concourse. It did lead to one of my favorite flying stories ever though. As I sat in my seat, sweaty and panting from barely making the connection, I looked out the window at the plane two spots over. The luggage had been removed from the belly and was sitting on the tarmac truck. No ground crew in sight. As we started to back out, a familiar shape and color caught my eye. Yes, it was my bag. No, it wasn't going with me. I'm one of the few travelers I know to actually witness my luggage being "lost."

Amina - Hope you enjoy your conference. Not too much to add to the previous. Do your homework on the airports online and you should be good. I usually jot down rough reminders on a piece of paper and keep it with my ticket envelope.

Make sure your ID is in good shape - the TSA pulled me for extra scrutiny because some of my plastic had peeled away. Speaking of the TSA, you can get the up-to-the-minute lasttimewehadmoneytodoit info here.

Have fun!

[Yfandes]

Many US Airlines allow you to pre-check in on their website and you can set up alerts to be texted to your phone. That way if there are any delays, you will know ASAP and you might even be able to set it up to text you gate information for the connecting flight.

Also check the airlines website for permitted items in carry-on and checked baggage, as well as size and weight restrictions.

I always keep a count in my head about what to keep track of (carry on, jacket, duty free bag - 3 things don't loose them!). In going through security I put everything important that I take off my body into a zippered pocket of my jacket or carry on - like money, credit cards, jewelry and hair clip. That way its all in one place and secure, and not out and in that little bowl they give you.

I have a routine for security. While in line I take off my hairclip, jewelry (bracelet, not rings or glasses), any coins or credit cards and stuff them into a zippered pocket in my jacket. When I get to where the bins are I grab two: One gets my laptop that I yoink out of my bag (they rarely care about my phone, iPad or Kindle but check the notices, and if they do add the other electronics to the laptop bin), one bin gets my shoes and jacket, then my carry on briefcase goes last on the conveyer belt. Once through you can re-assemble fairly quickly.

When you get to the airport, or land at the connecting airport, get to the gate first. Make sure of the loading and departure time, then go get snacks or drinks in sight of a departure screen that you can check.

[Immortal1982]

I went to San diego for comic-con by myself this summer, and i'll give 3 tips.

1. keep calm, shit happens. I had a divert to a "small parking lot" in arkansas due to storms and nearly missed my connection in dallas.

2. Have someone you can communicate with. I contacted a few people during some legs of the trip, including the divert. I also had to contact my hotel to hold the room but thats another story.

3. Listen to the airline people, they mostly know what they are doing. They got me across dallas international airport in just a few mins to make my connection, they got me directions to the taxi services, and they helped me adjust a bag to make it fit instead of having to check it.

[dalesys]

Are your transfers between airlines?

Go online and check out your transfer airport(s) concourse plans for airline assignment areas.

[Chromatix]

If something *does* go wrong during the transfer, eg. if the first leg is delayed so much that you can't possibly make the connection, talk to the airline reps at their desk in the terminal. Unless the airline is a real cheapskate, they'll rebook you on the next available flight at no charge. (And this is a major reason I try not to fly budget airlines - I'll look for the best price among the flag carriers instead.)

[DeltaSierra]

You may get lucky and have it be the gate directly across from the gate you landed at. But you need to be prepared for this to not be the case.

Happened to me many times when changing planes at O'hare.

Tons of great advice here, a few things I'd like to add:

Be prepared for shit to happen, because it can. You never expect it, and often its not what you *might* expect. Planes can be delayed for a thousand reasons, gates changed, airports emptied (like the dried ice bombs recently at LAX), delays at the security gates/TSA, etc..

In the spirt of "be prepared", while you can check your medication, I suggest you get one of those plastic weekly pill cases and put enough of your daily/weekly medication in one for several days. You don't want to be caught without them if there's an emergency.

Get a ziploc baggie and have a spare pair of undies, a toothbrush, hairbrush or comb, and some single use handi-wipes. This way if you are delayed or your flight is cancelled for some reason, you can freshen up.

Get photocopies/scans of your passport, your normal ID, your tickets and boarding pass if possible and keep them someplace separate, but not on your checked luggage. Its also a smart idea to get scans of all these and your drivers license, credit cards etc and keep them on a flash drive and keep that in your pocket, in the event your purse/wallet is stolen. I've never had that happen, but I've witnessed the chaos such a thing causes when its happened to other people.

Keep some cash on you - I was once at LAX when the debit/credit terminals all went down and tons of people were unable to purchase stuff - again best to be prepared.

Get an empty water bottle and bring it through security, then fill it at a fountain before you board the plane - DO drink water while on the plane, its very easy to get dehydrated in the cabin.

Most of all - have a fantastic trip!

[Jester]

I suggested scanning the boards by departure time because the time goes up in sequence, and is therefore easier to read quickly.

Some people scan numbers quicker, some words. Whichever is easiest for the OP is what they should probably use.

My suggestion is also influenced by travelling in Europe, where the destination on the screen might be in the local language, not English, or it might alternate between the two.

A fair point, but but the OP stated that they were flying within in the US, between PA and CA if I recall correctly, and so they really won't have to worry about this. But for future international travelers, this is something to remember.

Good one Jester!

I've had it happen once in fifty years of flying.

Ah, but it can and does happen. And I don't say this just because of your singular experience, mind you, but you may have noticed that another poster said this happens frequently to them, and I've noticed in the last few years of flying that more and more airlines are taking over entire or large portions of terminals. And so, if you're flying Idiot Jester airlines, chances are good that your connecting flight will be in the proximity of your original flight. Just this Tuesday, for example, upon my return from Phoenix, my Phoenix to Tampa flight let me off at a gate 5 away from my Tampa to Fort Lauderdale flight. And the most amusing (and scariest) example was years ago, again upon my return to Florida from Phoenix, landing late at the connecting airport (I believe it was Dallas or Houston), walking off my first plane, crossing the hallway, and walking right on to my second plane, which was boarding. I never even broke stride.

Keep some cash on you...

Very sound advice, and something to heed. We live in an electronic age, but electronics fail, and it's always good to have some cash on hand for whatever the traveling gods may decide to throw your way.

Get an empty water bottle and bring it through security, then fill it at a fountain before you board the plane - DO drink water while on the plane, its very easy to get dehydrated in the cabin.

It's important to note that airlines WILL serve you water upon request, and there are usually plenty of water fountains within the terminal. I'm not saying this is a bad idea, just that it may not be necessary unless you are normally one to dehydrate, or you are going to a much drier climate than what you're used to.* If you are going to Southern California for the first time, it is probably drier than what you are acclimated to in Pennsylvania, and walking around with water while there is probably a good idea. But you can buy it there for much cheaper than in the airport.

*Yeah yeah, I know...it's California, baby. It's the beach, and the ocean! But what many people forget or don't know is that Southern California is actually a coastal desert. And no, the two are not mutually exclusive.

[Amina516]

You guys have been amazing. I cant possibly quote all the good points and thank you individually, so Ill just give a group thanks. Except for this guy

If you fly alone, don't tell people you joined the mile-high club during the flight. lol

!!~!

Love it. Ill try not to...but Im pretty comfortable with myself.

I DO fly, so I am familiar with flying, just never alone. I generally turn hubby or the kids into a pack mule when I do. Im taking a backpack and a carryon. No checked luggage. I have my ipod, kindle and ipad ready to go. Trying to make my carry on not too heavy since Ive been having some shoulder issues lately. Im flying United all the way, so at least Im not switching carriers. Im hoping I luck out and have the gates close so Im not wondering alone and afraid (ok, not really afraid) Im not really planning on drinking since Ill be by myself; id like to have my wits about me. Have a shuttle paid for from LAX to my hotel once I get there.

Im excited to go to this conference! Not only did the hospital pay for the conference fee (about $700), they paid for the hotel AND I get paid for the week my normal hourly wage. I had to pay for the plane ticket, which in the grand scheme of things, $315 for a Californian vacation is not too shabby.

Thanks all for the tips and well wishes. If I can scrounge the free WIFI at some places, I can keep you updated on my travels.

[It's me]

Check the Internet for maps of the airports you will be passing through. Carriers each have their own sections at each airport... knowing the layout up front will help a lot if the gates are on different "arms".